A WOMAN ON A MISSION

Zimpapers Sports Hub

ZIFA vice-presidential hopeful Loveness Mukura says there is a need to bridge the football gap for the marginalised groups in the society if the game is to be all-inclusive in this country.

The charismatic Herentals Queens CEO is vying for a post in the elections set for tomorrow in Harare.

The 36-year-old administrator has already demonstrated her keenness to give the marginalised a chance in the game after she recently spearheaded the formation of two Herentals Queens Division One teams in Harare and Kwekwe.

She has also started sponsoring an amputee football team.

“I feel there should be programmes in place which should be put by the ZIFA board because most of the time, you see members attending programmes that are in urban set-ups where there is already enough infrastructure and enough coverage.

“So, there is a need for us to come up with programmes that can help the young girls in rural areas, most of who are marginalised.

“The thing that I would do the most is to come up with an awareness campaign and have specialised programmes aimed at the rural girl child, the rural boy child and the player living with a disability.

“These efforts and plans have to come up in a structured manner to cover the rural child, those living with albinism, the disabled and all the marginalised communities.

“That is a huge part of my vision when elected into the office.

“My heart really bleeds for those marginalised members of our society.”

Mukura believes stakeholders involved in working with the marginalised members of the society should be given key roles in leading the empowerment of these groups through football.

“These peripheral groups work with key stakeholders who know their needs and preferences, who know how to handle them and who know the details pertaining to their needs when it comes to the most beautiful game.

“In this vein, stakeholder engagement becomes very critical because I can see we don’t have particular committees in our set-up to cater for the needs of these marginalised groups.”